Google MapMaker: How It Can Help Your Business

We already know that it’s important to keep business information consistent across the Internet. In fact, inconsistent information can not only confuse your prospective customers, but it can also negatively affect your ranking in search engine results. In addition to the directories your business is listed on, you should also make sure that customers are able to find you and up-to-date information on Google Maps.

NAP, It’s Important

First things first, it’s important to verify that your business’s information is correct wherever it is listed. The most important thing to check is your company name, address and phone number (also known as NAP for those who like acronyms or sleep-related terms). This information is like your company’s fingerprint, it’s a unique identifier that helps Google and other search engines recognize your business and it helps potential customers find you.

Google’s MapMaker allows people to become cartographers and use their local knowledge to update Google maps by adding and editing locations around the world. It provides access to correct errors you may find, add missing points of interest and add details to existing content

To confirm user contributions are accurate, each edit will be reviewed. After the additions are approved, the edits will appear in Google Maps within minutes—dramatically speeding up the time it takes for online maps to reflect the often-changing physical world.

These user updates help determine whether your business is listed correctly in Google, and how visible your business is in Google+ Local search results.

To see if your Google Maps information is accurate, perform a search of your business’s address and look at the map results to see where your business shows up. Is the pin dropped in the right location? Is the content and NAP that appear accurate? In addition to being able to edit this information, you can also add extra details, like hours of operation, if your business is located in a shopping center or if there’s a parking lot available.

It’s a good idea to perform Google searches of your business anyway, to make sure your online reputation is fair and accurate (if you don’t like what you see, here’s how we can help).

There is also an Edit/Report button in MapMaker, where you can request a listing be changed by providing an explanation as to why certain information is incorrect and any valuable information supporting your claims, though be advised Google can reject your appeal.

Updating your business location with accurate detail on Google MapMaker will help your customers to find you, and will give you an edge during map location searches. MapMaker also feeds data to Google My Business.

Note: Google has several YouTube Videos and a FAQ to help users navigate and make edits with MapMaker.